How does Cumbria County Council spend your money? : Cumbria County Council

Cumbria County Council is responsible for spending £819m every year on local services. Over £200m of that cash comes from the council tax that you pay. That’s why we think it is really important to tell you just how that money is spent. We’ve picked out some of the highlights from this year’s budget – you can find all the detail on our website at cumbria.gov.uk/aboutyourcouncil/money.asp

This year nearly 700 local people joined our budget consultation exercise to tell us what they think the council should prioritise. They told us that spending on the county’s roads should be top of our list. That’s why we have increased our spending on road repairs by £2.5m so that next year we will spend a total of £28.6m on the upkeep of our roads. We are also adding an extra £500k on highways revenue maintenance and an extra £300k to our annual budget for winter maintenance so that we can keep our roads clear when snow and ice hit.

Another top priority for people in our consultation was providing activities for young people. The council spends nearly £350m every year on the county’s schools – but we also provide activities for youngsters outside school. An extra £250,000 has been earmarked next year for activities for pre-teens – bridging the gap between exiting funding for Surestart children’s centres and the Youth Support Service activities for teenagers. Overall the council spends £440m each year on improving the life chances and well being of young people.

Facing up to the credit crunch and tackling poverty is a big theme of the council’s new budget. Recession busting measures include a freeze on home and day care charges, a 293k investment in school clothing grants and a further £150,000 to support debt management advice and credit unions.

Cumbria’s population is getting older as people live longer. This puts a big strain on the council’s £213m budget for improving the health and well-being of adults. The council is helping more older people live independently in their own homes– and modernising and upgrading care accommodation for those who need it. This year’s budget includes preparatory work for a new 60 bed care home in Barrow.

What does this mean for me?

The county council’s share of council tax will increase by just 2.5%. This represents an increase of 8 pence per day for the average band D property. Please note that the table (right) illustrates only around three quarters of your final council tax bill - the remainder is charged by your district council, Cumbria Police Authority, and in some places parish councils as well.

Your council tax bill:
                                                     £ per annum     £ per annum
                                                         2008/9              2009/10
Band A (up to £40,000)                       741.36               759.89
Band B (£41,001 to £52,000)               864.92               886.54
Band C (£52,001 to £68,000)              988.48               1,013.19
Band D (£68,001 to £88,000)              1,112.04            1,139.84
Band E (£88,001 to £120,000)             1,359.16            1,393.14
Band F (£120,001 to £160,000)           1,606.28            1,646.44
Band G (£160,001 to £320,000)          1,853.40            1,899.73
Band H (£32,001 and over)                  2,224.08            2,279.68

This is how the county council spends your cash:
Improving council services £26.8m
Making Cumbria more prosperous £4.7m
Improving the health and well being of adults £212.8m
Improving the health and well-being of children £440.6m
Creating safe and secure communities £30.9m
Creating and protecting a high quality environment £69.8m
Capital Financing £25.7m
Contribution to reserves £7.7m